Zpacks pocket tarp with a ground sheet door

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I bought a zpacks ground sheet here that was supposed to be a bathtub but turned out to just be a flat groundsheet. I already have a polycryo groundsheet that is flat so this doesn’t seem like much of an improvement.

I took my pocket tarp out in the rain and got a little wet because I rolled part way out of the tarp enclosure in my sleep. In the morning, it occurred to me the slight hexagonal shape of the groundsheet might provide for a makeshift door to give me better coverage on rainy nights.

[Monte Masterson]

Clever idea. Looks like you attached the groundsheet by using the tieouts provided on it. Back when Joe first came out with the Hexamid (Pocket Tarp) he offered an optional detachable beak. I never saw one in person, but I know they existed.

I just made a silnylon Pocket Tarp copy and I’ve thought about a zip on/off beak using a long, one way separating zipper. I’ll probably just make a mirror image of the front piece and sew it on. Then use a short separating vertical zipper for entry and exit.

The Pocket Net I made a couple of weeks ago is seen under the tarp. Decided to go with a zipper to keep a groundsheet in place.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I did attach it using the tie-outs that come with it.

I had heard about this detachable hexamid door but I have never seen one. When I unfolded the ground sheet to discover it was not a bathtub at all, I noticed also that the logo is upside down. I wondered if maybe this was actually one of these detachable doors, so I tried attaching it. And it works.

I my opinion, it’s sort of useless to spend a lot of money on a relatively heavy flat ground sheet when polycryo works just as well at a fraction of the cost and weight. But as a detachable door, maybe I can find a worthy use for it.

Your homemade tarp is really well done, as is your inner net.

[Daniel M]

My understanding of the groundsheet was that it was compatible with the hexamid…the attachment points (via bungee) will hold it in place and also gives you the ability to pull the corners up higher when there’s rain.
At least this is the case with my hexamid tent + groundsheet

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

Yeah it seems that it does clip into the tarp. It didn’t come with any bungees, though. It takes the shortest amount of elastic plus a mitten hook for the rear corners and a longer length for the front ones. It is smaller than a polycryo groundsheet, and the polycryo can also be gathered and then tied to the corners, which makes the polycryo into sort of a bathtub, at least in the back where you need it.

My understanding is that the pocket tarp is essentially the tarp part of a hexamid, no extended beak, no attached bug net.

[Cameron M]

I have used both a silnylon and DCF Deschutes tarps for years, and they are essentially the same shape. I use the hexamid floor/poncho with it, and pull up the front a bit higher up the support pole. Most of the time, works fine. But in several bad storms I have felt too exposed and I am wondering about changing to a shelter like a mid where I can really buckle down when it gets bad. In those bad conditions, polycro would not be good enough for me.

[Author]

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